HOW HYBRIDS ARE PINCHING EV SALES
There has been intense debate about electric vehicles in Australia but it appears the majority of the population hasn’t been listening. The latest report from Roy Morgan, based on more than 50,000 responses, reveals that while buyers are warming to green vehicles, they are more likely to plump for a hybrid than a full EV.
More than 10 per cent of respondents indicated they were considering a petrolelectric combo for their next vehicle.
Just 2.3 per cent were looking at an EV. Toyota Australia sales and marketing boss Sean Hanley says hybrids are becoming mainstream.
“People do see hybrid as a credible option,” he says. “It’s affordable, there’s no range anxiety, there’s no infrastructure required to support it and it reduces CO2 emissions and it reduces fuel consumption.
“It has become a proven technology and more and more people are embracing it. We see that as a bridging step to the next iteration of the vehicle as we know it.”
A hybrid version of Toyota’s Corolla — the country’s second best selling passenger car — costs just $1500 more than the petrol-only version. costs about $30,000 more than its petrolpowered equivalent.
Hanley says hybrids account for a sizeable chunk of Toyota passenger car sales.
“On Camry I can tell you that our order
intake is running over 50 per cent — almost 60 per cent,” says Hanley.
Hybrids account for about 30 per cent of Corolla sales, while hybrid versions of the new RAV4 are tipped to make up about 40 per cent of orders.
Plug-in hybrids — which are capable of running for short distances on electric power before switching to the petrol engine — are becoming more prevalent in showrooms but not attracting the same interest.
The BMW 5 Series plug-in hybrid, which sells for the same price as the petrol-powered 5 Series, accounts for just one in 10 sales.
Sales of hybrid vehicles have risen dramatically in the past 12 months.
Official VFacts figures show 6520 hybrids were sold in the first four months of 2019, an increase of 63 per cent over the same period last year. The overall new car market is down by 8 per cent.
The Roy Morgan survey found that hybrids were the only engine option to show growth in intent to purchase.
The figure was 10 per cent — up from 5.6 per cent four years ago. Petrol fell 3 per cent to 60 per cent, diesel was down 0.2 per cent to 27.4 per cent and electric fell half a percentage point to 2.3 per cent.
Roy Morgan communications director Norman Morris says generational differences are developing over fuel choices.
“For example, the early adopters of changing vehicle fuels are most likely to be Millennials as they appear to be more likely to move away from the traditional petrol engined cars,” Morris says.